🔗 Share this article Mount Everest Hikers Report 'Extreme' Weather as Large-Scale Operation Persists Hikers have recounted encountering "harsh" conditions after an unseasonable blizzard during one of China's busiest festive periods stranded numerous of people on Mount Everest, triggering a massive rescue effort. Rescue Operations In Progress Chinese authorities stated that around 350 individuals had made their way down but at least 200 remained stranded at the Everest Scenic Area, situated to the eastern side of the mountain, on the Tibetan side of the border. Crowds of visitors had journeyed to the region for "Golden Week," an eight-day festive break in China. However, local officials, who administer the Tibetan Autonomous Region, confirmed heavy snowfall had hit the area on the weekend, trapping numerous of people at tent sites at an altitude of more than 4,900 meters (16,000 feet). "This was the harshest conditions I've experienced in all my hiking experiences, without question," Dong Shuchang said on Weibo, describing a "violent convective snowstorm on the eastern slope" of Everest. "I looked up in the middle of the night and noticed that the snow had almost buried the peak," said a hiker on a social platform. "That was the initial instance I genuinely experienced the terror of being engulfed by snow." Personal Accounts One Chinese trekker said their party had been "too scared to sleep" on Saturday as snow rapidly built up around their shelters, compelling them to clear it every 90 minutes. They chose to descend on the next day as the conditions worsened. "During the descent, we met our guide’s parent who had searched for him. It was then we discovered the storm was heavy in the lowlands too; villagers, unable to reach their children on the mountain, were extremely worried." The northern and eastern side of Everest is easier to reach than sites on the neighboring side of the border and attracts large crowds of visitors for less technical hiking, not requiring ascent of the peak. Visual Evidence Photos and video shared on the internet depicted shelters covered by snow and rows of trekkers moving through deep drifts to descend the mountain. "The snow was very deep, and the trail extremely slippery. Hikers often slipped – a few tumbled, others were bumped by pack animals," said one, who clarified that all safely descended and were transported by bus. Current Status By the weekend, about 350 individuals had reached Qudang, a village about 30 miles away from the Tibet-side starting point of Everest, "in good health," official sources announced. No fewer than 200 additional remained trapped but had been contacted, the updates indicated. Media outlets reported that hundreds of emergency workers had ascended the mountain to assist those trapped and remove accumulation from obstructing the way out. There was little official reporting or updated information about the rescue effort on Monday. Uncertainty remained if the weather had impacted anyone on the northern side of Everest, also in Tibet. The area is tightly controlled by the authorities, and journalistic access is restricted. The weather also appears to have have affected phone services, with attempts to contact shops not connecting. A number of hikers said electricity was cut in Qudang when they arrived. Weather Patterns Autumn is a busy period for the area, with usually calm and pleasant conditions, but Chen Geshuang, one of 18 members of a trekking group that made it back to Qudang, said that the climate this year was "not normal." "Our leader said he had never encountered conditions like this in the fall. And it happened all too suddenly." The local tourism authority announced ticket sales and entry to the Everest Scenic Area were suspended from the weekend. Broader Effects Neighbouring countries were affected as well by extreme weather. Torrential downpours caused mudslides and sudden flooding that have blocked roads, washed away bridges, and killed at least 47 individuals since the start of the weekend in Nepal.